


getting better for the two of us

by sabinelagrande



Category: X-Men (Movies), X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, First Meetings, Fluff, Hearts and Rainbows, One of My Favorites, Resurrection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-18
Updated: 2012-02-18
Packaged: 2017-10-31 08:51:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/342192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabinelagrande/pseuds/sabinelagrande
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><em>Adapt and survive</em>, the eroded lettering says; it's got a ring to it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	getting better for the two of us

**Author's Note:**

  * For [helens78](https://archiveofourown.org/users/helens78/gifts).



Rogue has never seen Professor Xavier surprised by anything; she wonders if anyone ever has. But they're sitting in his office one day, talking about something, and suddenly his eyes widen. He doesn't even finish his sentence, just turns his chair, rolling out of the office and down the hallway towards the front door; he barely seems to notice when Rogue follows him. 

He hits the button to open the door, and a man is standing there. He's covered in dirt- and as far as she can see, nothing else- and he brushes it away from his brown skin, shaking his head to get it out of his hair.

"Darwin," the professor says. "How did you-"

"He said 'Adapt to this,'" the man tells him. "So I did." He spots Rogue, and an embarrassed look comes over his face; something complicated happens to his lower body, the effect of which is that she can't see- well, she can't see anything. "Just took me a while."

Professor Xavier seems dumbfounded for a moment, but then he snaps out of it, waving him in. "Come in, please come in," he says. "There's so much to talk about."

\--

It's been so long that no one even knows him- they all know _of_ him, but even the statue of him is starting to be consumed by the ivy. She wonders how old he is, how anybody's even supposed to tell with everything that goes on around here, if it matters at all.

She goes to the garden to look at it, his face in stone, pulling the greenery away from the base so she can see the inscription before she sits down on the bench across the way. _Adapt and survive_ , the eroded lettering says; it's got a ring to it. She wishes she could do it, but she's only just gotten good at the survival part. The adapting is something else entirely.

She startles as someone sits down next to her, flinching away; she's covered, but it's an instinct thing. "You say something one time, and they carve it on a rock," Darwin says. "That's really spooky."

"I'll bet," Rogue says. 

"Between you and me, everything's pretty spooky around here," he confides.

"I know what you mean," she tells him. "It's bad enough when you didn't just come back from the-" She stops there, not knowing if it's a polite thing to bring up or not.

He laughs. "It's okay." He turns, looking at her. "Somebody told me about you."

She panics, just like always. "It's not true," she says, and he just grins.

"It's not bad," he promises. "Take off your glove and give me your hand. I want to show you something."

"That's not a good idea," she says, moving away.

"Just trust me," he insists, and there's something in his eyes that makes her want to do it. She tugs one of her gloves off, holding out her palm, ready to break away in a heartbeat. He lays his hand over hers, his skin warm against it; he looks uncomfortable for a moment, sucking in a breath, but then he lets it out and-

Nothing happens.

She looks at their hands in amazement, and she doesn't- she can't- she's never felt like this before. She's never had this, not since that horrible day when- It's clumsy and awkward and she shouldn't, but she all but throws herself at him, kissing him recklessly. He makes a surprised noise, but he kisses her back, putting his arms around her.

She gets it back together after a moment, pulling away from him, trying to figure out what the hell is wrong with her that keeps her from acting like a normal person. "God, I'm sorry. It's just that-"

"Don't be," he says, leaning forward and kissing her again. "I can adapt." He laces his fingers into hers. "And if we're lucky, we can do a little more than survive."


End file.
